And….. we’re back!
For the first year ever, all Oasis choir members are returning members. This has been an exciting anomaly both relationally and musically for all of us! We continue to build from where we left off.
This year’s Oasis entry took a different shape as we gathered for lunch on Monday before entering rehearsal. One could call it a “gentle entry” as opposed to the roaring 8:30 Oasis start time that typically begins with flubbering lip trills and soaring sopranos finding ear splitting decibels too early in the morning. Tuesday’s entry kept the theme going as Esther introduced the choir to “gentle hugs.”
Conductor Wendell has made a new request of the choir this year. “Please come warmed up. This includes body, voice, and breath.” We have been doing excellently with this approach as all of the choir has reached five every morning in our rating system. (well maybe)
After many hours spent Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday morning in stop and start mode, tuning pitches, nailing consonants, and working memory, Wednesday afternoon brought us an opportunity to run a full concert. Memory, line arrangements, choreography, and enter/exit strategies all make for a whole-body experience. Add some humor at the numerous wide-eyed stares shared between choir and conductor as this entrance was missed or that mouth spat a “t” while those teeth closed on an “s.” Our favorite deer-in-the-headlights moments often come when the conductors hands comes down to begin our next piece, all mouths open to contribute the first word, and only half the vocals sound. This is typically an indication of the following: complete memory loss on song order, palpitating hearts and racing minds trying to pull it together, and zero willingness to be “that person” who has to ask for the next song title.
A new thing offered to singers this year was a Developing Artists seminar. Wendell and Bettina hosted a series of conversations centered around reading sections of the book, For the Beauty of the Church: Casting a Vision for the Arts, ed. by W. David O. Taylor. Four singers singed up for this course and the group involved held a panel discussion Tuesday evening for the benefit of the whole choir.
Thursday afternoon’s departure came swiftly. Our beautiful bus pulled into Pittsburg at roughly 6:00 pm and many took the opportunity to explore food options and the city.
Are we ready for the weekend Chorale Connections experience? Yes! We are excited and privileged to contribute to the weekend alongside other choirs who share our vision and love for sacred choral music.
Sarah Miller
Soprano 2